Her Sacrifice
by Bamboofoxfire Productions
Summary: When THAT demon came, they were forced to flee, but who could've foreseen the tragedy of that day? Then, THAT demon brought pain and suffering to the mortals, but there is a prophecy. "Orochi can only be defeated with the power of the chosen one."
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Fire engulfed the plant life, huge mass of smoke choking the air and the smell of blood all around. Screams filled the air as countless Celestials fled. Overpowering the terrified screams were vicious roars that seemed to make the ground itself shake. Close to the size of the floating Plain itself was a massive chunk of earth. On it were stairs that led up to a bell at its center. Curled and writhing around the bottom of the floating island were the bases of the long necks of the terrible beast.

At the ends of the eight thrashing necks were the reptile-like heads with glimmering dagger fangs and blood red eyes set in its head. Its long serpent body glowed a magnificent, beautiful gold that contradicted the horrible nature of the reptilian beast.

"Hurry! This way!" A young, velvety voice urged. Resting on the ground was a huge, metal ship, intricate blue lines decorating its sides. The Celestials pushed to get inside to safety, away from the demon that was attacking. The seemingly young man who was urging them on had long, golden hair. His shirt was similar to a Japanese Kimono, the cloth having the same color as cherry blossoms, with a darker pinkish shirt underneath. His pants were a dark purple, and he wore tall, red sandals that were nearly half as tall as his legs.

Another vicious roar split the air, stinging his ears. A wave of black edged with crimson sped out along the once beautiful plain. A few Celestials got caught by it, screaming with terror before they fell silent and collapsed. The wave surged forward without slowing until suddenly, plants bloomed and dispelled the horrid black magic.

The young man watched as a magnificent white wolf appeared at his side. She had long, wing like appendages that sprouted from the bottoms of her paws, her shoulders, and her haunches. Her fur was laced with intricate crimson spider-web patterns and swirls across her back and face. More crimson color edged the wing-like appendages and the swirls of her tail, which was tipped with black.

Her pelt radiated with white light, and floating above her back was a red and orange disk with swirls similar to those on her back etched into its surface. The disk was engulfed in swirling azure and red flames that licked harmlessly at her back. She growled at the 8-headed demon in disdain, baring her sharp, ivory fangs.

"Amaterasu!" The young man exclaimed. "The Celestial Plain is lost, but we have to defend the others until they can board the Ark!" The wolf looked at him, their eyes meeting for a second. Without a sound nor signal, they rushed forth, coming between the demon and the fleeing Celestials. The heads glared like death itself down at the two and snarled viciously. One of the heads moved farther forward than the others, still thrashing wickedly. Atop this head was a gold helmet much like the armor covering the rest of it's body, a large crest atop the helmet that looked like fire with something written on it.

"O, wild god of the heavens, your hope is lost! I will destroy this land, the Celestial Plain and all who are here. Once I am rid of the only ones standing in my way, I will control the world, and no one will be able to stop me!" The beast roared in a terrible, booming voice.

"Shall we, ma Cherie?" the young man commented to Amaterasu, just barely holding the nervousness from his voice. The wolf snarled at the enormous demon fiercely as the demon reared it's heads and roared. The battle was not long, but the young man and Amaterasu struggled to draw the battle out, for they knew they couldn't win this battle.

The young man panted, looking behind him. The last of the Celestial's were surging into the Ark. "Amaterasu, it's time to go." He spoke. The serpent roared viciously. "You won't escape from me, O wild god! All of you shall die here!" The demon's head lunged forth but before his fangs closed over the wolf, his eyes were slashed seemingly by an invisible sword. He shrieked and hissed in pain and anger, shaking his head in the air in a frenzy.

"Come, ma Cherie, before the ship sets sail without us." The young man commented. They quickly retreated to the Ark and the huge door closed shut. The young man and Amaterasu made their way to the control center. Using the device, the young man programmed it and with a creaking shutter the ship took to the air, sailing away from the Celestial Plain, slowly at first, then gaining speed.

The young man breathed a sigh of relief and looked to his companion. "That was a close one, eh, ma Cherie?" He asked. The wolf barked in what seemed to be agreement. "Now that we're away from there we should-" Suddenly a wave of screams came from inside the ship. The young man and Amaterasu rushed to see what was happening.

Horrible creatures were pouring out from deep within the depths of the ship, pouncing on the Celestials on board and slaying them.

"What's happening? This ship was supposed to be a lifeboat for everyone on the Celestial Plain!" The young man exclaimed in horror. Amaterasu watched in grief and horror as the monsters kept coming, killing the Celestials before her eyes. She crouched, snarling and readied to leap when the ship lurched, creaking. Suddenly it veered chaotically in different directions, Amaterasu struggling to keep her footing.

"The Ark's rudder is gone!" The young man shrieked, holding onto part of the ship to keep himself steady. The ship hurtled through the clouds, it's bottom skimming against the rock as it passed between two mountains. It crashed into a lake at the two mountains' base, the whole ship shuddering and moaning. The young man was thrown from whatever he was holding onto and hit the ground hard, then the lights in the inside of the ship went out.

The young man stirred drowsily, his skin brushing against fur. He stood up clumsily, his head aching terribly, and looked at his friend. The wolf stood, her fur brushing against him.

"What happened?" He asked. Amaterasu turned her head and the young man followed her gaze. All around them the wind howled, throwing snow through the air in a vicious blizzard. Below, they could see the Ark they'd been in only a while ago. The door of the ship was open, but the Celestials did not come from within. The demons that had slain them poured out in countless numbers, the snowy ground below not even visible.

The young man grimaced. "How could this happen? All the others, were they…?" He looked at the wolf and the mourning in her eyes told him what had befallen the Celestials. His hand delicately brushed her head and stroked her velvety ears. "You saved me in there, didn't you, Amaterasu?" He didn't need an answer to know what the wolf had done. "I only wish the others had made it…" The wolf licked his hand gently.

He watched as the demons filed out in a daze for a long moment before he spoke, his voice suddenly calmer.

"_Orochi can only be defeated with the help of the Chosen One."_

Amaterasu's gaze slid up to his face. It was a prophecy. His eyes met hers again. "So it seems now, we wait until the day when the Chosen One destroys that terrible demon, eh, ma Cherie?" He spoke. The wolf rested her head against his thigh and yipped in agreement, the young man still stroking her ears gently.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Would you like to help me collect water?" Her velvety voice rang like a heavenly chime.

"Of course, don't I always?" The young man replied more calmly then he felt.

"Well then, I'll get the barrel for the water. The rice is ready for me to turn into Sake for the night of the full moon."

The young man watched mourningly as the beautiful young woman returned to her house to get the water barrel. The accursed night of the full moon that always came around that time of year. The night when another beautiful maiden of the village would be sacrificed to _that_ monster! He feared this year, and every year, that his beloved Nami would be chosen, but so far their luck had held. The village wasn't particularly large, but it did have a good number of people in it.

It had been peaceful and prosperous, until the day that that demon had shown up. Each year a sacrifice was chosen, and if the sacrifice didn't come, the whole village would be destroyed. She returned with a large barrel bigger than her, dragging it behind.

"Alright, we can go now." She said gently.

The young man looked at her for a long moment.

"What is it, Nagi?" She asked.

"Oh, um… nothing. Nothing at all." He stuttered. "I should get my sword before we go, there might be demons about." He said, trying to change the subject.

"Yes, of course." Nami said as he went for his house and returned a moment later with a purple sword. At the handle was a moon shape that gave it almost a divine air. He slung it over his back before helping Nami with the barrel.

As they left the village they came to a large, open field with long, flowing grass. They traveled up the path towards the port that led to the forest.

"So, um… what kind of Sake are you planning on making for this year?" Nagi asked, trying to lighten the mood. He knew Nami must've been thinking about the sacrifice as well. "Well, I was thinking maybe something strong this year, but sweeter." She said calmly, though Nagi knew she must've been terrified inside.

"That sounds pretty nice." Nagi commented. Then both were silent as they walked, reaching the dock where a small boat waited, with enough room for the two of them and maybe the barrel. They had a hard time getting the barrel to the forest, and soon after had to lug it up a fairly steep hill to the spring at the top.

"The water is always so clear right here." Nami commented, the water clear and clean enough to see her reflection. She pulled two much smaller buckets out of the larger one, handing one to Nagi and they began to shovel the water into the barrel. Nagi's heart pounded with mixed feelings of love, uncertainty, and despair.

What if his beloved was chosen by _that_ demon? He knew how to use a sword, but the mere thought of the terrible beast that plagued them was enough to make him cower. He wasn't particularly liked by most of the villagers. Every time something happened that he was involved with, Mr. Grapefruit began ranting, 'What has that fool done now?' Of course, Nami was the only one he truly liked in the village, and even that was an understatement.

He looked for words to say but for a while he couldn't say anything, gathering up his courage. "Um, n-Nami? Incase you were chosen…that is… um…" He kept his gaze off her, afraid of what she might think. "Nami…I really…" He started to look up and saw her staring behind him suddenly.

"Nagi!" He whipped his head around, only to see a demon. It was an Imp, a demon that somewhat resembled a large monkey, with a paper mask over its face that was covered in markings, and a weapon resembling a guitar on its back. It screeched in a rough, crackling voice, readying to strike.

Nagi noticed another one like it, and two other's who looked more green in color, similar to the larger one's, but they had demon flutes instead. "Back, you fowl demons!" Nagi barked, drawing his sword, but the threat seemed to go unnoticed. As one of the Imps lunged, Nagi struck out with his sword.

He heard a pained howl and the Imp collapsed to the ground. One of the smaller, green Imps lashed at him, but Nagi swiftly dodged, slicing into the Imp and going after the other, smaller green Imp. It was easily defeated and collapsed at his feet. He felt a hard impact on his back and collapsed, blacking out for a moment.

He groaned, stirring, before he heard Nami's voice. "Nagi! Look out!" He turned his head to see the Imp attacking, and he couldn't strike back in his current position. He readied himself for the blow but as the weapon came down the Imp was sliced seemingly by an invisible sword, flying back and lying dead on the ground a few feet away.

Nami rushed over to his side. "Nagi, are you hurt?" She asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, but who saved me?" He asked dumb-founded.

"I don't know. It's as if it was cut by some invisible force." She said, still worried.

"Well, come on. We should go back to the village. It's not safe here." Nagi stated, getting up and walking to the barrel. He stopped, feeling eyes on him. He turned his head up in time to see a shape disappearing over the top of the cliff above.

"Nagi?" Nami's voice rang out again.

"No, it's nothing." He said after a brief pause, dragging the barrel behind him to take it back to the village.

Nagi winced slightly as Nami touched the top of his head. It hurt still from when the demon attacked him, but he didn't visibly show his pain. He knew Nami would only worry more. "Are you sure you're alright?" Nami asked again for the millionth time that night.

"Yes, I'm just fine." He replied patiently.

"That fool…" He heard. Great, here came the village elder. He was an old, crumpled man, bent over a walking stick with a long, white beard.

"What were you trying to do, get killed? Such a fool, being surprised by some lowly demon like that!" He scolded. Nagi was barely listening. "If it were me, I would've-" He stopped as he heard a sound, turning. The other villagers rushed outside as they watched eight different colored lights appear in the night sky in a circle. They spun around until joining together to form one white light. It hovered in the air for a moment before suddenly shooting forward at lightning speed. Their eyes followed it, until it collided with the top of someone's house, a white plumed arrow sticking in it.

It was the house of another beautiful young woman who Nami was good friends with. She looked sympathetically at her friend, taking her hand in hers and gave her a look of apology.

"I'm so sorry. It should've been me." She said caringly. She could see the fear in her friend's eyes but received a meek smile.

"No, it's alright." She said quietly. She turned away, starting for her house and disappearing inside, coming out a while later in a silky, white robe.

"I'll walk you to the edge of the field." Nami offered nicely, following. She could see the relief on her friends face as they started forward but they froze. The other villagers looked at them, following their gazes to the bridge crossing the river through the village.

Sitting calmly in the center of the bridge was a white wolf, its pelt radiating a majestic glow, red spider-web patterns across its back, and many mysterious items hovering above its back.


	3. Chapter 3

**Authors Note:** Sorry I've stopped working on this for so long! But I finally got to working on it now that I have a computer to do it on at home. Not much to say, seeing as there doesn't seem to be any fave's or reviews on this story… But I'm thinking somewhere around 20 short chapters for this.

**Disclaimer:** Ookami belongs to Capcom and Clover Studio, even if they are disbanded now.

* * *

**Her Sacrifice**

**An Ookami Fanfiction**

**By: Kougetsu_KitsuneHinote_Hakuma**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

"But where did it come from?" Mr. Grapefruit rasped, still bent over his walking stick as the other villagers gathered around him thought a moment. "There haven't been wolves in Nippon since my Father's time." He added, which considering the old man's age, was quite a long time ago.

"Perhaps it came from the Northern Land?" Nami guessed, seeming to be thinking hard about it. The old man stroked his beard in careful consideration at this idea.

"Perhaps. If so, then it would have to be one of the humans that turns into beasts from the land of Kamui. That may indeed be what we are dealing with. After all, it doesn't look like an ordinary wolf." Mr. Grapefruit stated, the group looking towards the wolf. It was sitting away from them on a large boulder by the bridge over the village river, ears pricked as it watched a brown dog bound around it, barking enthusiastically. "That would probably mean that it can turn into human form and talk to us." He said with a nod of decision.

With that, the old man turned around and hobbled toward the wolf with his cane, moving slowly as his joints creaked in protest before coming to the bridge. He cleared his throat, earning the wolf's full attention.

"White Wolf from the land to the North, I am the village elder, Mr. Grapefruit. Please, feel free to return to your human form so we may speak together." He said with a nod. The two stared at each other for a long moment, awkward silence ensuing for a long moment before the wolf grew bored and yawned, curling up as if to sleep. The old man was startled and sweat slightly.

"So much for the old man's idea…" Nagi grumbled, rolling his eyes slightly. Mr. Grapefruit shook his head in defeat and hobbled back.

"Perhaps it is not a tribesman of Kamui after all…" Mr. Grapefruit said sorrowfully, shaking his head. The brown dog yipped in jumped up, tail wagging before the white wolf yawned and stood again, shaking off its coat and jumping onto the bridge before trotting towards the group curiously, sitting a few feet away and looking at them idly.

"I'm not sure…but it did follow Hanaki to the Moon Cave…" Nami said, thinking of her dear friend that had been chosen as this years sacrifice.

"I think you're all thinking to hard on this. It's obviously just a dumb beast." Nagi snorted. The wolf seemed to understand with slight shock before growling and positioning itself in an offensive stance, the strange items hovering over its back seeming to spread away from each other and radiate energy. The villager's jumped back in surprise while Nami stifled a laugh behind her hand.

"Just a dumb beast, huh?" She laughed. "Smart enough to understand an insult, though, isn't it?" The wolf snorted with something like agreement before sitting down again, with its back turned to them this time. The old man stroked his beard again in deep thought before a realization came to him.

"Hold on. I remember hearing something of a white wolf when I was just a lad." Mr. Grapefruit said suddenly. For a time, it appeared around the village at the time of the annual festival and the sacrifice. Perhaps this is the same white wolf." He said thoughtfully.

"Wait, but wasn't that a long time ago? Surely a wolf would have died long ago if it was seen that many decades ago." Nagi stated. "And it always appeared around the time of the festival?" He inclined his head to the side in thought.

"Yes, it's rather odd. It only began appearing the same year as _THAT_ demon began to plague our village." He said sorrowfully. "No one had seen a white wolf like it until Orochi appeared in Nippon." The wolf seemed to perk and instantly turned around with a hard to read look in it's eyes. The villager's looked at the wolf a long time, their thoughts all heading in a particular direction before Nagi grabbed the hilt of his sword.

"I would bet that it's a familiar of Orochi!" Nagi growled, drawing his sword. The wolf growled once again and lowered itself into a fighting stance, hackles raised and mysterious items along its back radiating an otherworldly energy again. The villager's stepped back in surprise and slight fear as the wolf snarled at Nagi while he readied his sword.

"If that's the case, we should get rid of it here and now."


	4. Chapter 4

**Authors Note:** Thanks to a very nice review on another story, I had the drive to finish this chapter ASAP since it was the next thing to write on my updates schedule before I could update that other story, so here's the next chapter! I actually finished this only 3-4 hours after Chapter 3 in this story, which means more updates for you guys! Hope you like it! Also, I know these chapters are dreadfully short, so I'm sorry, but there will be some longer chapters later so do not fret!

**Disclaimer:** The credits for Ookami go out to Capcom and Clover Studio, who RIGHTFULLY deserve the credit for the Wii port as well but did not receive *shake fist*

* * *

**Her Sacrifice**

**An Ookami Fanfiction**

**By: Kougetsu_KitsuneHinote_Hakuma**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

"Nagi!" Nami cried, trying to stop him from attacking the wolf, partly in fear that he might get injured. The man ignored the cry as he launched himself at the wolf, bringing his sword down to strike it. The wolf easily swung to the side to avoid the attack, energy building into a string of gold beads around its neck.

Nagi spun around and slashed out at the wolf, but a shield that had been hovering over its back shot forward and blocked his intended attack. As the shield returned to its former position, the beads became a long whip connected by a glowing gold beam of light, lashing out at Nagi's legs and knocking them out from under him, the young warrior flopping backwards onto the ground. Nagi groaned slightly, exasperated before he heard the old man, Mr. Grapefruit fuming behind him.

"Get up, you fool! Before we have to deal with saving you!" He barked. Nagi inwardly rolled his eyes as he jumped to his feet but found that the wolf was prancing away triumphantly, almost seeming to mock him, which only served to infuriate him. He went to lunge again but was stopped as Nami grabbed a hold of his arm.

"Nagi, don't. You'll just get yourself hurt." She pleaded. Nagi scoffed and glared daggers at the white wolf as it jumped back onto the boulder, wrapping its tail around it and seeming to look at him with a wolfish smirk. He conceded, mostly for the sake of not worrying Nami, and placed the sword back in the holder on his back.

"Stupid wolf…" He muttered, crossing his arms. Mr. Grapefruit grumbled to himself and shook his head, hunched over his cane again.

"Well, then for now we can assume that it's on the side of _THAT_ demon, which means we should all be very careful when it's around." Mr. Grapefruit said thoughtfully. They stopped in their conversation as a loud, earth-shattering roar ripped through the air that was unmistakable, making them all shiver with fright, even Nagi. The wolf abruptly turned around, ears pricked before it jumped off the rock and started to gallop back toward Shinsho Field, quickly disappearing, only strengthening their suspicion that it was with Orochi.

"Everyone," Mr. Grapefruit began, earning their attention. "I think it was about time that we should all get our rest soon. This has been a very long day." He said as he shook his head wearily. The townspeople began to disperse to their houses, though Nagi stopped as he noticed Nami staring out towards Shinsho Field. He inclined his head slightly and raised a brow.

"What is it, Nami?" He asked curiously.

"Shiranui…" She murmured thoughtfully. Nagi only raised a brow higher.

"What?"

"Shiranui. It's a fitting name for that wolf, don't you think?" She said, looking at Nagi thoughtfully. Nagi gawked at her for a moment before shaking his head and looking at her almost disapprovingly.

"Nami, it's not a _pet_, it's a minion of that demon! You don't just go around naming stuff like that!" He barked.

"Well we have to call it something." She said, shrugging her shoulders before starting towards her house.

"Why can't we just call it the White Wolf or something then? It doesn't need a _name_!" He retorted hotly.

"Well then you go ahead and call it the 'White Wolf'. I'm going to continue calling it Shiranui." She shot back before going into her house. Nagi groaned and wiped his hands down his shaggy face.

"Great going, Nagi. You just made the only woman you love _angry_ at you!" He quietly chastised, heading to his house gloomily.

* * *

The salty wind brushed past Amaterasu's silky white and red coat, the crimson and blue flames flickering from her main reflector, Solar Flare. Her black eyes gazed thoughtfully at the tall blue shrine gate that led to the Moon Cave, the lake around it glittering faintly with countless stars.

The sun goddess' mind flickered back to previous times through a place long since gone. The scenes of the endless, golden fields and overshadowed forests played through her memories, of her romping through the untouched, beautiful land that she once called home. Water that was clear and fresh trickled across vast, open landscape and tumbled from rocky cliffs of the mountains that once stood tall and proud.

Around the floating paradise billowed great white clouds from the Mortal world below, bringing a cool, refreshing mist, and as the sun set and brought with it a pure, innocent darkness, the night was alive with fluttering fireflies lighting up the great fields that were always in bloom as if spring never ended, the breeze from the God of the Wind tickling through the branches of the three of Flora, existing side by side in complete harmony, just as it should have been.

There, the Rabbit's moon was so close one could almost feel as if they could touch it, the stars and constellations glittering brightly like the fireflies, where everyone lived together without quarrel's or pain, even alongside the golden-haired Immortals of the Moon Tribe.

And then there was that far away stretch of nothing but acrid, seething darkness. No, not of darkness, but of _evil_. The realm of both the mighty and terrible Lord of Darkness and _THAT_ demon that flew across the sea of stars to bring its deadly plague to the most Holy of places. The memories of the once gorgeous, placid plain was consumed by fire, darkness, and death, and it was almost as if tears sprung to the watchful eyes of the wolf, a jolt of pain traveling through her chest. Soon, _THAT_ demon would fall.

The Chosen One was already among the Mortals.


	5. Chapter 5

**Authors Note:** Yay, new chapter. Not much to say but I did quite enjoy writing this 83 Much more than I thought I would, though again, I apologize for shortness. Please R&R!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ookami, it belongs to Capcom and Clover Studio!

* * *

**Her Sacrifice**

**An Ookami Fanfic**

**By: Kougetsu_KitsuneHinote_Hakuma**

**Chapter 5**

It had been a year since Shiranui had appeared, and Nagi had quite happily not seen the white wolf since a few days after the festival. Keeping a vigilant eye out, he helped Nami to drag the sake barrel up the Agata Forest path toward the spring. Ever since that rather humiliating defeat trying to fight 'Shiranui', as Nami kept calling it, and now the other villagers as well, he'd been honing his battle skills dutifully.

"…Nagi?" The middle-aged warrior was snapped out of his thoughts at this and looked at Nami with a somewhat apologetic look.

"I'm sorry…what?" He asked. She huffed and gave him a critical look.

"You were thinking about Shiranui again, weren't you?" She challenged. The male sweat-dropped slightly, but couldn't bring himself to lie.

"Sorry…just with the festival on the way and that demon's sacrifice…" He began.

"…You're worried and all that, I know." She finished, having heard this multiple times recently. "But could you at least help pull your weight on the sake barrel? I'm not all brawn and muscle you know." This only managed to make him sweat-drop more and utter a quick apology before helping her drag it up toward the spring. The pair stopped in front of a small merchants shop, deciding to take a quick break before lugging the large wood thing up the hill.

"Ah, hello Nagi, Nami. Come to prepare this years Sake again?" The merchant greeted. "I hope its as good as last years, even though it was a little late…" He said thoughtfully.

"Well, last year we had a bit of an unexpected occurrence…" Nami said.

"Oh, yes, the white wolf you told me about. That was rather odd. No one's seen a wolf almost at all since many decades ago, during my Father's younger days I believe…" The merchant said with a nod of remembrance. "Much less a white wolf…although I have heard of the beast-man tribes to the north. It wasn't one of those, was it?" He ventured curiously.

"No, it was a foul demon working for _THAT_ hideous beast." Nagi grumbled, crossing his arms. "If I see it again this year, I swear I'll defeat it once and for all…" He growled. The merchant looked past him a moment.

"Well if that's the case, perhaps you should try looking behind you…" Nagi and Nami blinked in surprise before turning around, the same white and red wolf sitting just some feet away, calmly looking at them. Nagi instantly growled low in his throat and drew his sword for battle.

"You despicable beast…sneaking up on us! Prepare to be slain!" He snarled before leaping towards the wolf. She readily jumped back to avoid the swing which hit the ground harmlessly. With another growl of fury the warrior threw himself forward with his blade traveling in a wide arc, but she only twirled to the side and lashed out at him with the reflector on her back, sending him flying back into the merchants stall with a cry of surprise and mild pain.

"My stall! Look at the damage you've caused!" The merchant cried, throwing his hands up and fuming angrily. Nagi growled as he pulled himself from the rubble with a bit of difficulty.

"Blame that…lousy…no good…wolf…" He growled as he managed to get back to his feet. The wolf only yawned as if bored, sitting down and curling her tail around her paws.

"I blame you for starting this in the first place! I hope you have enough money to pay for these damages!" The merchant continued to rage. Ignoring him, Nagi leapt forward, but was greatly surprised as Shiranui did the same, swooping under him and launching herself upward, throwing him off balance. With a cry of surprise Nagi overshot the edge of the path and fell into the sand bank below, scrabbling in the dirt.

Shiranui only sniffed before looking back at the ruined stall, flicking her tail. The stall suddenly sprang back to how it was before as if time had been turned back to before Nagi had landed in the stall, making both Nami and the merchant blink and rub their eyes in shock. Shiranui only silently chuckled to herself at their surprise as she smirked wolfishly and trotted past them up the trail before Nagi returned baring his sword.

After a few moments he did, looking around furiously for Shiranui before snorting and returning his sword to its former position on his back.

"Stupid demon…" He growled.

"Well you _are_ the one that attacked Shiranui in the first place…" Nami pointed out. Nagi only growled to himself before Nami walked back to her Sake barrel.

"But besides that, are you going to help me with this or do I have to do it all myself?" She asked impatiently.

"No, no… I'm coming." He said, walking over to help her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Authors Note:** Gah…seriously? Two whole months since I last updated? I feel like a horrible author…but on the other hand, _almost no one has reviewed!_ However, I do owe some thanks to kinetic-cataclysm for their lovely review…you other readers out there seriously need to review! Why do you think it took me so long to get myself to do this? –motivationally dead-

As kinetic-cataclysm also noted, the chapters are all very short. Well, this is meant to be a short story and will consist of 25 chapters, so chapters WILL. BE. SHORT. Not to mention I have about four other stories currently being worked on. BUT, I should be able to work on them more and have more motivation to write now that I don't have school! Yay summer break! Assuming I don't go to f***ing summer school like my parents are trying to force me to… -growls-

**Disclaimer: **Ookami does not belong to me. Capcom rightfully owns those rights(I know I used right and rightfully, _shaddap_).

* * *

**Her Sacrifice  
An Ookami Fanfiction  
By: Kougetsu_KitsuneHinote_Hakuma

* * *

**

**Chapter 6**

The floor of the young Poncle's house was littered with papers scattered haphazardly all over the floor along with brushes, scrolls, ink bottles, ink stones, and many other miscellaneous items in piles off to the side while paintings were strewn about on the wall on display or to dry. There was also a bookshelf and other things for everyday living that most Poncles in the village had. The young Poncle was busy painting on a large scroll that was spread out along the length of his home and was working on painting his latest piece, moving with slow care to make sure each and every line and color was absolutely perfect. Or as perfect as he could make it at least.

The picture was of a fox and a tanuki bounding through a small glade with a tree in the background. His brush delicately glided over the page before he sat up, a bit of a smile growing as he looked on at his latest artwork. It was absolutely stunning and he had to admit he was impressed with himself and his patience over making it. He picked up his seal stamp and pressed it into a small box of red ink before pressing it to the page at the bottom corner.

"There, it's done!" He exclaimed pridefully, crossing his arms over his chest. The moment of triumph was interrupted as a voice broke through the air.

"Ishaku!" The young Poncle turned his head toward the door where an older Poncle stood, his hair turning gray in some areas. "Are you still in here painting?" He demanded in a rough voice.

"No." Ishaku defended. After all, he technically finished and wasn't painting anymore. Technically. The older Poncle looked over Ishaku and the room with scrutinizing eyes, hands on his hips.

"Is that so? And what of your studies? Have you finished those yet?" He demanded. Ishaku sighed. He'd started them, but they didn't spark much interest for him.

"No, father. I haven't."

"Must I stay in the room to make sure you complete them? Your studies come before your little doodles." He growled.

"They aren't doodles…" Ishaku mumbled, more to himself than to his father. He'd never taken much interest in the studies his father tried to force him to do, and his father had no interest in his art. Which made this an ongoing argument.

"What was that?" Sakaki, the older Poncle, demanded.

"I said they aren't doodles!" Ishaku barked hotly. He had always taken great pride in his art and hated it when his father belittled his hard work.

"The point is there are things to do like studies and other such things…" Sakaki growled, crossing his arms over his chest as he watched Ishaku hurriedly roll up the scroll painting he'd just finished. "You have no time for such unimportant things."

"It's important to me, and it was important to Mother too!" Ishaku snapped, pushing his way past quickly. Sakaki just stood, his mouth gaping as he looked stunned by Ishaku's outburst before sighing and running a hand through his hair uncomfortably.

Ishaku grunted as he bumped into another Poncle, tears stinging the corners of his eyes. He had run into one of a pair of other Poncle boys who looked at him questioningly. Ishaku spared them no explanation and swept around them, making a bee-line for the village's exit.

"What's wrong with him?" One spoke aloud, tilting his head. He had a lopsided ponytail tied in the back of his head, a little to the left side. The other shrugged.

"Who cares. Ishaku's just a _big cry baby_!" He said, his voice becoming louder and mocking as Ishaku walked away. He sniffed and ran his arm across his eyes to get rid of the tears that were forming. Who needed any of them, anyway?

* * *

Ishaku sniffled as he stared out over the snow-blanketed landscape of Kamui, his knees pulled to his chest. The other Poncles didn't share his love of art or understand him at all. He hated it. He wiped his eyes dry for a moment before producing the scroll he'd painted on earlier, uncurling it and looking over the picture sadly. His mother had always loved his art, fully supporting him the whole way. Until she'd died. Now all Ishaku ever heard from his father was about studies and having faith in the God's.

Ishaku sighed and looked down, feeling alone and dejected. It didn't seem there was anyone who supported his art or endeavor's anymore.

"Oh?" The sudden voice jolted Ishaku from his thoughts, making him jump and ultimately fall to the snow, his art scroll falling on top of him. Ishaku shivered as he shook the snow off and looked around furiously for the one that had startled him. His gaze came to a tall human figure with pale skin, and light blue eyes. Odd, he'd never seen anyone with such pale blue eyes before.

A helmet resembling a glaring blue hawk adorned his head, a cloth falling down from beneath the back of it, and all but concealing his blond hair, which hung just over his face. He was dressed in a light pink kimono over a hot pink one, with dark purple hakama and tall red geki that made him look much taller. A katana was tied around his waist and rested against his left thigh, with a gold guard and gold and white hilt.

"Excuse moi, I didn't mean to startle you, little sprite." The man, who seemed to be fairly young to middle aged, apologized with a slight chuckle. Ishaku huffed but found it in him to forgive the man. After all, it was an accident.

"It's fine." Ishaku waved off, struggling to recollect his painting while maneuvering the deep snow.

"If I may…" The man began. "You wouldn't mind if I took a peak at that scroll you have there, would you?" He ventured, tilting his head slightly. Ishaku hesitated for a moment before agreeing.

"Fine by me." He shrugged. The man nodded curtly and picked it up carefully, examining the piece of art with obvious interest.

"Are you the artist of this wonderful piece?" The man finally asked, a note of impressments in his tone.

" 'course I am." Ishaku said, somewhat pridefully. "You like it?"

"Oui. It is very lovely. Exquisite detail." Ishaku didn't know what 'oui' was or meant, but he was sure he could guess by the rest of what he said. "It reminds me of pieces I have seen where I come from." Ishaku's interest was piqued and he hopped up onto the tree stump he'd been sitting on before the man's arrival.

"Well you obviously aren't from Nippon. Where are you from exactly?" Ishaku ventured curiously. He didn't fail to notice a shadow pass over the man's face as though remembering something terrible and felt a little guilty for asking, but it had seemed a very innocent question before. The foreigner gently rolled up the scroll and handed it back as he seemed to be debating with himself.

"Well, since you asked, it would be rude of me to refuse, I suppose." The man said, his crystalline blue eyes taking on a distant look. "You may call me Waka. I'm a member of the Moon Tribe." He admitted. After all, there was no harm in divulging this information to a nature sprite. Ishaku tilted his head with a somewhat incredulous look.

"Moon Tribe?" He repeated. "How could life even survive on that desolate rock?" He questioned. The man known as Waka merely chuckled.

"The Moon Tribe possessed far greater technology than any of those in Nippon. Living there was not such a difficult thing for our kind." Ishaku nodded in understanding but noted something odd about the wording Waka used.

"Possessed? Don't you mean possesses?" Ishaku once again noticed a shadow fall across Waka's gaze and he shook his head sadly.

"The Moon Tribe no longer exists, save for me. All of the others have died off." Waka said, his voice filled with sorrow.

"How could such an advanced culture die off completely?" Ishaku questioned, but was met with utter silence as Waka quite pointedly avoided looking at him. Ishaku felt that he had gone a little far asking and tried to change the subject quickly. "So…what are you doing here then?" Waka looked back, hiding away the sadness that had sprung up.

"Waiting." Waka answered simply.

"Waiting? Out here? For what?" Ishaku asked, finding this to be decidedly odd.

"That depends." Ishaku was confused.

"Depends on what?"

"On what you're asking that I'm waiting for." Waka replied in a playful tone.

"That's why I asked."

"Yes, but which thing that I'm waiting for are you asking about?" Ishaku was admittedly starting to get irritated, growling in his throat slightly. Waka merely chuckled, amused that Ishaku was getting mad. "Well, I'm waiting for a few things. I'm waiting for the fated day to arrive at long last, and I'm waiting for the day when I may return home. But right now, I'm waiting for a fine lady to arrive." He said in an odd tone.

"You're waiting out in the snow, in Kamui, for a lady?" Ishaku repeated in disbelief. "Man, you're one weird guy. So who's this lady you're going to meet up with?" He questioned, while at the same time wondering if this man, Waka, was completely sane.

"The only fine lady to ever win my heart, of course." He answered as though it was the simplest thing in the world. "But the meeting is not for me, my bouncing friend. And it seems as though she is here." He said. Ishaku looked around and saw no one.

"Huh?"

"Well, au revoir, little sprite." Waka said. "Give my regards to the fine lady for me." He said as light radiated around him.

"W-what? Hey, wait!" Ishaku protested, the man fading away, becoming transparent. He seemed to realize something just before completely vanishing.

"Oh, and I almost forgot. Her name is Amaterasu."

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**Authors Note:** Please **REVIEW**! Unless you want another two months wait before I update, _**REVIIIIIEEEEEWWW**_!


	7. Chapter 7

**Authors Note:** Holy cow, it's been over a year since I've updated? Where does the time go? I honestly didn't mean to but I just got so busy with school and life and trying to write my own book that I totally lost track of just how long had passed, and haven't had the time to work on this almost at all…but FINALLY I return with a new chapter!

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**Her Sacrifice  
****An Ookami Fanfiction  
****By: Kougetsu_KitsuneHinote_Hakuma**

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**Chapter 7**

Snow crunched under paw, an odd scent in the air though the white-and-red she-wolf went unaffected by it unlike many others. Her ears were quirked as she listened carefully, knowing that she could be attacked by demons at any moment, not that she was too worried. Compared to what she had faced before with Orochi among other demons, they were small-fry against her godly powers.

The wolf's wise, dark eyes gazed about curiously, but it seemed as though she was either early…or not in the right place. Huffing through her nose, a white cloud of breath floated up before she resumed trotting forward, gliding over the snow with little effort.

"Hey, hey watch it!" A miniscule voice chirped a moment before she stepped another paw forward and then yelped, something stinging the underside of her paw and making her leap back. "Yeah, doesn't feel good, does it?"

Her dark eyes went to a small figure as it hopped out of the snow, appearing almost as if a bug or something…maybe a flea, but surrounded by a faint glow. She tilted her head slightly as she sat back in the snow, lowering her head so that her nose was just short of him, looking apologetic.

"Eh, it's fine, I am pretty small after all." Ishaku chuckled. "And I certainly didn't expect a wolf out here with the pollen and all that, though you really are a weird looking one." He said, climbing onto her nose.

Quirking her ears forward, Amaterasu lifted her head with Ishaku standing on top of her nose. She couldn't help but think he was just a little bit strange too…and not at all what she expected. Not to mention, she couldn't seem to figure out what someone like him would be doing out here…

"I live out here," the sprite said, taking Amaterasu by surprise a little. "Me and all the other Poncles do. Hehe…I can tell you didn't expect me to be able to answer you, huh? I pride myself at being rather good at reading animals and stuff." The young poncle gloated, folding his arms behind his head. "Anyway, what are you doing out here? This is an awefully strange place to just be wandering."

Amaterasu recalled Waka having wanted to meet with her, but she had to admit this was a strange place for him to choose to meet…then again the blond Moon Tribe survivor was always a strange one, a bit eccentric to say the least, but a good man.

"So you're the one that blond weirdo mentioned meeting?" Ishaku said, reading her expressions and body language rather keenly, crossing his little arms over his chest. "He just disappeared into thin air not more than maybe ten minutes or so. So that means you must be that Amaterasu he mentioned."

Amaterasu couldn't help but roll her eyes. Leave it to Waka to tell her to meet in the most frigid, out of the way place in all of Nippon only to disappear right as she got there…real nice, Waka.

"Yeah, said something about waiting but that he wasn't supposed to be the one meeting you or something." At this the sun goddess tilted her head in question but Ishaku merely shrugged. "Not sure exactly who he meant to meet you, but…wait, you don't think he meant for us to meet or something, do you?" The sprite questioned, seeming to come to realization.

The answer to that, Amaterasu couldn't help but think, was probably yes, though she wasn't sure why. Or why Waka couldn't just come out and say that he wanted her to meet someone, no, he had to go the strangest route possible.

"Anyway, the names Ishaku. I'm an artist! Though not everyone likes my work…" Ishaku grumbled this last part but Amaterasu merely looked interested as he mentioned this. "Would you like to see some of it? I _am_ pretty good, if I do say so myself." The white-wolf yipped in confirmation and the little sprite pulled out the painting he had been working on before, hopping to a nearby space untouched by snow to lay it out. "Take a look! I worked real hard on this one, it has to be my best work yet!"

Trotting over, Amaterasu had to admit she was impressed. Ishaku's work just had so much _life_ to it, so much spirit. It was definitely work that he had put his heart into.

"I see you like," Ishaku noted smugly, more than happy that she seemed impressed. "It's really nice to have someone that's not just a critic for once. And plus, you're a god, aren't you? That's a really high honor for someone like you to appreciate my work. Unlike my father who doesn't care at all about my work…but one day I'll show him!"

Amaterasu found a smirk crossing her wolfish lips at his show of spirit but she had other things that she had to do, too…and it seemed like there weren't any demons or anything nearby.

"Aw, going so soon?" Ishaku nearly whined. Unfortunately though, she had other things to attend to…important things like those involving the Kamiki Festival and _THAT_ demon. As much as she wanted to, she couldn't just stick around and hang out with the little fiery sprite. "I guess you don't really have much choice, huh?" he sulked, rolling his art scroll back up. Once again Amaterasu looked apologetic as she offered a ride on her nose, the sprite accepting the invitation, the she-wolf trotting back towards the stump in the center of the little Yoshpet glade. Stopping, she lowered her nose for the sprite to hop off and start walking towards the little entrance sulkily before he perked up, turning around. "Hold on, just wait right here!" He said before whirling around and dashing inside.

Amaterasu tilted her head but laid down on the untouched grass, curiosity getting the better of her as she decided to wait. It would be sort of rude to just leave anyways, after all, without even letting him the chance to say goodbye or know that she had gone, expecting to come back to find her still there. Patiently she waited as the minutes ticked by before Ishaku re-appeared toting several things with him, hopping on top of her head.

"Amaterasu…boy, that's a bit of a mouthful, mind if I just call you Ammy?" Amaterasu flicked her ears in disregard of the nickname. "Great! Anyway, I've made a decision. I'm going with you?" Amaterasu's head shot up in surprise and nearly succeeded in knocking the little sprite off. "You heard me! I'm gonna come with you! I can't spend even another day in this insufferable place where no one understands me or my wonderful work…and besides just that, I want to see it all, every corner of Nippon, and learn a bunch on the way! And maybe when I come back, I can be a person that my old man can actually be proud of. Come on, whaddya say? Help a little guy out, would you?" He said, leaning over to gaze down at her.

After a moment the wolf let out something like a sigh, quirking her ears before a canine smirk fell across her maw. It couldn't hurt to have a little companion travelling around with her, might even be fun, in fact. Standing up, she shook herself off before turning back towards the entrance of Yoshpet so they could leave the deranged forest.

After all, who was she to say no to such resolve and determination?

"Al-right! Nippon, watch out! Ishaku the aspiring artist and his friend Amaterasu are on the way!" He cheered, pumping a fist in the air excitedly. The white-wolf merely wagged her tail as she continued on her way.

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**Authors Note: **Nothing to really say except please **REVIEW!**


	8. AN: Notice

**A/N:** Hey all my loyal readers. I regret to tell you guys that I won't be working on any of my fanfictions for some time, as I'm very busy with college classes, work, and the part that some of you might be most interested in, a book that I hope to publish this summer. I'm sure if you have me on your watch lists and read my works already, then you may be very much interested in this bit of information.

If you aren't, feel free to ignore this. If you are though, I've already written three completed chapters and am working on more as the day's go by. You can find it on Fictionpress, my account name being the same as on here(Bamboofoxfire Productions, I've changed it recently from my old one listed on my fanfictions you might notice)

Anyway, the book I'm working on is called The Crow's Nest. Look forward to hearing from some of you and would love any and all constructive criticism, critique's, or just regular old compliments and comments.

Please and Thankyou! And sorry that I can't update the fanfictions you've all come to love. I'll probably get back to them eventually, but for now my focus is on other things that I really need to get done.

~The Great Me


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